B. Riley Cuts Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT) Price Target to $7.00

Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT) had its price target trimmed by B. Riley from $8.00 to $7.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Separately, Craig Hallum raised shares of Performant Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st.

Performant Financial Stock Down 8.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ PFMT traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $3.35. 381,136 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 177,508. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 2.65 and a current ratio of 2.65. Performant Financial has a 52 week low of $2.37 and a 52 week high of $4.35. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $3.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.32.

Performant Financial (NASDAQ:PFMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The business services provider reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $29.36 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.20 million. Performant Financial had a negative return on equity of 10.10% and a negative net margin of 6.74%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.05) EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Performant Financial will post -0.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Performant Financial

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PFMT. First Light Asset Management LLC raised its position in Performant Financial by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. First Light Asset Management LLC now owns 10,515,127 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,914,000 after purchasing an additional 845,017 shares during the last quarter. Kent Lake Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Performant Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $588,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Performant Financial by 3.5% during the first quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,219,341 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,525,000 after acquiring an additional 74,954 shares in the last quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. purchased a new stake in Performant Financial in the third quarter worth $271,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Performant Financial by 12.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 526,277 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,526,000 after acquiring an additional 60,300 shares in the last quarter. 77.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Performant Financial Company Profile

Performant Financial Corporation provides technology-enabled audit, recovery, and analytics services in the United States. The company identifies improper payments resulting from incorrect coding, procedures that were not medically necessary, incomplete documentation or claims submitted based on outdated fee schedules, and coverage discrepancies; and provides first party call center and other outsourced services.